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Overview

New Zealand leave it late

(FIFA.com) Wednesday 31 January 2007

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For neutral football fans around the globe, the fact that New
Zealand were the winners of a seven-team tournament which
included Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Samoa, Tahiti and New
Caledonia may not be all that remarkable. However, what was truly
remarkable about the Oceania Football Confederation's Youth
(U-20) Tournament held at the Trusts Stadium in Waitakere was the
development of the so-called 'island' teams.

Arguably a watershed moment for these teams came on 2 November
2006, not in Auckland, the home of the OFC, not in Zurich, the home
of FIFA, but on the Copacabana beach when the Solomon Islands
defeated Cameroon by five goals to two at the FIFA Beach Soccer
World Cup. Although the win was not enough to take the Bilikiki
boys beyond the group stages of the competition, it has served as a
rallying call for the island nations and given them hope and the
confidence to feel as though they can take on the big boys.

With Australia's departure to the OFC, the 'big
boys' in Oceania are the All Whites, the hosts of January's
continental competition. Speaking before the tournament began,
coach Stu Jacobs admitted that there was pressure on his side to
finish in first place. "Coming second is not an option,"
he said. "We expect to win the tournament. We are focused on
getting to the World Cup and getting through the qualifiers is a
stepping-stone."

Solomons shock hostsA combination of a numerical disadvantage, nerves and the
woodwork seemed to conspire against Jacobs' side in their
opening match against the Solomon Islands on the first day of the
tournament. Judd Molea's sweetly-struck 28th minute free-kick
gave the underdogs the lead, but parity was restored when Sam
Jenkins powerfully nodded home Leo Shin's cross five minutes
later.

New Zealand were expected to pile on the pressure in the second
half, but were instead dealt a blow three minutes after the restart
when captain Jack Pelter saw red for his second bookable offence.
Their frustration was further compounded with Jeremy Brockie and
Craig Henderson both hit the woodwork, although the Solomons could
easily have won themselves when captain Molis Gagame's stinging
85th minute drive deflected to safety off the crossbar.

Fiji got off to a flying start with a 7-0 win over Samoa, which
included a hat-trick for Roy Krishna, who finished as the
tournament's leading scorer with seven goals. The Fijians also
enjoyed successes against Vanuatu (2-0) and the Solomon Islands
(3-0), with Krishna bagging a brace in the latter. The hosts,
meanwhile, were progressing in a professional manner. They enjoyed
a 7-1 victory over Samoa, who failed to gain a single point in
their six matches. A commanding performance from Fulham midfielder
Chris James helped the All Whites to a 2-0 win over Tahiti to
ensure that the match with Fiji would indeed be decisive.

Excitement, expulsions and escortsThe game of the tournament was undoubtedly the meeting of the
top two on Saturday 28 January. It was the Fijians who took the
lead when Krishna weaved his way past three flat-footed New Zealand
defenders and struck a shot past Jacob Spoonley in the eighth
minute.

James equalised from the spot two minutes before half-time,
before Dan Keat nodded New Zealand in front. Fiji were back on
level terms in the 68th minute when Krishna scored from the penalty
spot, but less than ten minutes later Keat headed home the winner
from a Jeremy Brockie cross.

Fiji were reduced to ten men in the 83rd minute when Kelepi Qaqa
saw red for elbowing New Zealand striker Jeremy Brockie in the face
as the pair chased a ball. Fearing the safety of the referee and
New Zealand's players after the full-time whistle blew, the
police were asked to escort the officials and the All Whites from
the field of play.

"It was billed as the game of the big two so I'm happy
we came out on top," said Jacobs. "I guess it had
everything… some reasonable football at times, goals and lots of
controversy."

The result also introduced a potential contender for a place in
Canada, New Caledonia. The Pacific nation had won their opening
three games against Tahiti, Samoa and Vanuatu. Tougher challenges
were to follow for the French colony and two defeats in their final
games left them in fourth position. It was the Solomon Islands who
finished in third spot, with 11 points from their six matches. They
were left to rue a 2-2 draw with Vanuatu, as a win in that match
would have seen them finish second.

Final day confirmationAnd so, it all came down to the final day as Fiji played
Tahiti and New Zealand met New Caledonia in afternoon kick-offs.
The All Whites' player of the tournament, James, missed two
first-half penalties against New Caledonia, but scored a last
minute goal to ensure qualification. As it was, James' concerns
were ill-founded anyway as Fiji were upset 2-0 by Tahiti in a match
that finished on an adjacent Trusts Stadium pitch just seconds
before the All Whites' dramatic winner.

Coach Jacobs was overjoyed afterwards as New Zealand, who
finished four points clear of Fiji, became the 22nd qualifiers for
the 24-team FIFA U-20 World Cup which takes place in Canada
between 30 June and 22 July. "I said to them I don't care
how you win just as long as you win, we're off to a World Cup
so I'm not complaining," he said. "People can say
we've made hard work of it but as I've said throughout
whole tournament, the Island teams aren't easy to beat anymore
as Tahiti have shown against Fiji - and New Caledonia and Fiji has
shown against us."

New Zealand striker Jeremy Brockie said qualification was a
dream come true. "A lot of young people dream of playing at a
youth World Cup and not many get the opportunity so we've got
to take it with both hands and make New Zealand proud," the
Sydney FC striker said. "It's a dream come true for me. A
lot of people were on our backs coming into the tournament but the
lads stuck together and look at us now… we're on a plane to the
other side of the world!"